Utility systems, such as an electrical utility system, are monitored using a network of intelligent electronic devices (“IEDs”) coupled to a workstation for monitoring various parameters of the electrical utility system. The network of IEDs and the workstation are typically referred to collectively as an electrical monitoring system. Some electrical monitoring systems operate in a peer-to-peer communications environment that uses a publisher/subscriber mechanism for exchanging messages between the IEDs. However, in these peer-to-peer communications environments there is often no means to analyze and/or store the messages being communicated between the IEDs. Further, in these peer-to-peer communications environments there is often no reliable and/or accurate method for reconstructing a sequence-of-events relating to the electrical utility system. Thus, this lack of analysis and storage in the IEDs leads to the performance of an unreliable and inaccurate sequence-of-events (SoE) analysis after an event of interest occurs in the electrical utility system.
What is needed is a way to reliably and accurately perform a sequence-of-events analysis relating to various parameters of an electrical utility system. There is also a need for an IED that can analyze and store messages communicated between IEDs in an electrical monitoring system. Aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are directed to addressing/solving these and other needs.